President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday hailed the latest Malampaya natural gas discovery as a “national treasure,” saying the new reserves will help strengthen the Philippines’ energy security and sustain indigenous gas production for years to come.

Speaking during his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), Marcos said the extension of Service Contract (SC) 38 until 2039 enabled drilling operations to resume at the Malampaya gas field for the first time in eight years, leading to the latest gas discovery.

“Because of the extension as well of the Malampaya service contract until 2039, drilling operations once again resumed for the first time in eight years. What we have uncovered is truly a national treasure,” Marcos said.

According to the President, the newly discovered reserves are sufficient to supply electricity to around 1.6 million households over the next eight years, reinforcing the role of Malampaya as the country’s only indigenous source of natural gas.

The reserves were identified through the Malampaya Phase 4 drilling campaign being undertaken by the Service Contract 38 consortium, led by Prime Energy. The recently drilled Malampaya East-1 and Camago-3 wells are scheduled to deliver first gas later this year, extending the productive life of the field and helping sustain fuel supply for gas-fired power plants that provide a significant share of Luzon’s electricity requirements.

Marcos said the successful exploration campaign has also renewed interest in the country’s upstream petroleum sector, prompting the government to accelerate petroleum exploration.

“Inspired by this development, we have already awarded a total of fourteen petroleum service contracts—in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. By far, this is the highest number of such contracts ever to be awarded during a single term of any President in our history,” he said.

The President also reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to expanding both indigenous and renewable energy resources to reduce the country’s dependence on imported fuel.

Prime Energy welcomed the President’s recognition of Malampaya’s contribution to national energy security, saying the extension of SC 38 provided the regulatory certainty needed to resume exploration and drilling activities.

“The extension of SC 38 provided the regulatory certainty needed to resume exploration and drilling activities in Malampaya,” Prime Energy said. “We thank the Department of Energy for its support and look forward to bringing the Phase 4 wells into production later this year to help sustain the country’s indigenous gas supply.”

Marcos conducted a fly-by inspection of the Malampaya Shallow Water Platform off the coast of Palawan on July 23, ahead of his SONA, as the SC 38 consortium prepares to bring the Malampaya East-1 and Camago-3 wells into production later this year.

Malampaya is the Philippines’ only indigenous source of natural gas and has supplied fuel to power plants that generate around one-fifth of Luzon’s electricity for more than two decades. The Phase 4 expansion is expected to extend the field’s productive life as the country works to maintain domestic gas supply while advancing its energy transition.

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